RuneScape talks up a new boss fight, the Advent Calendar's return, and wide-reaching patch updates
The current week in RuneScape is pretty busy judging from the game's regular missive, with an event, a boss, and a patch that by its own admission is "all over the place." On the game news side, there's the start of this year's Advent Calendar, granting players free goodies every day up until Christmas. Those […]
What the heck is Krafton up to this week
Krafton Krafton Krafton. This massive Korean games company has been a whirlwind of confusion over the last couple of years as it's smooshed around its holdings and substudios and companies. Let's try to sort it out, shall we? Here's what we think we know: The company actually began life as Bluehole back in 2008 and […]
Skyforge details the improvements to the new player experience coming with the next patch
If you haven't played Skyforge yet, the developers would like you to do so. Obviously they would also like you to continue playing if you're already a fan of the game, but the new player experience that's being rolled out along with the next patch on December 2nd for PC players is focused on, well, new […]
Daybreak has been sold – again – this time to EG7 Global for $300M
Who had this on the end-of-the-year bingo card? Apparently, Daybreak has been bought out – again. The company holding the hot potato this round is EG7 Global, which you'll recall just recently made news for buying up Piranha Games, which runs Mechwarrior Online. According to the press release, the sale price for Daybreak was $300,000,000. […]
Massively on the Go: Pokemon Go's Go Beyond update is surprisingly solid for vets and newcomers alike
Yes, in case you missed it, Pokemon Go's Go Beyond update is live. My preview piece was updated right up to the release, so if you're not sure what all the hubbub is about, feel free to give it a once over. The big points are the new level cap (50), XP retuning, Seasons (both […]
Black Desert pushes back its digital Calpheon Ball as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic
COVID-19 is such a threat, it's even causing digital events to be delayed. According to an announcement post from Black Desert, preventative measures that are required to fight back a resurgent pandemic will cause this year's Calpheon Ball — which was already going digital because of COVID-19 — to be pushed back a week. The […]
Fight or Kite: Albion Online's mobile beta hits the sweet spot
I'm still in quite a lull when it comes to MMOs as of late. I don't know whether it's related to the time of year or I'm just heading towards a burnout, but nothing seems to really be catching my attention for some nightly gaming. So instead I've been trying to find something to play […]
Pokemon Go's Go Beyond, seasonal events, and PvP season 6 are all live
Good news for Pokemon fans: Pokemon Go's Go Beyond update is now live. The promised raised level cap, XP booster, and surprising hidden bonuses hit us all at once, but there's even more to the update as Niantic's Seasons are rolling out. Changes include the northern hemisphere having former (mostly) egg-exclusive pokemon Alola Sandshrew and Alola […]
First Impressions of World of Warcraft: Shadowlands, part three: Influences and summation
One of the things that I generally like to avoid doing is comparing World of Warcraft to other MMOs on the market. Even as we've moved on from the era when, by volume, the market was "WoW vs. everybody else" into a stage when it's the big five, the fact of the matter is that the […]
CDPR frames Cyberpunk 2077's multiplayer as a 'standalone product'
Cyberpunk 2077 is a game we've kept half an eyeball on over the last few years, basically entirely because of the lingering promise that it'll eventually offer a multiplayer option – albeit one that's at least two years away and probably more. But more details revealed during CD Projekt Red's recent quarterly investor call sheds […]
Ashes of Creation talks about a new island, new lighting, and testing for December and February
The end of November was host to yet another livestream from the devs of Ashes of Creation, which touched on an assortment of topics including the design of cosmetics, work on combat, a look at a big scary dragon, and of course preparing for the pre-alpha testing phases coming in December and February. To that […]
Guild Wars 2 delays WvW world linking until Friday
One of the newer systems that Guild Wars 2 uses to maintain World vs. World population and rank balance is temporarily offline this week. ArenaNet reported that there's been an issue with the next batch of WvW linking — but that the problem should be resolved later this week. "This is an update regarding world […]
Tiny MMO Book of Travels releases a 30-minute gameplay video
Ready to see the pulse-pounding action of a "serene" online world? We hope you're awake, buckled into a safety harness, and biting down on a mouth guard, because Book of Travels published its very first gameplay video this week. Woo! OK, maybe it's a more sedate experience than we were letting on in that misleading […]
The Daily Grind: Which IP should never, ever be turned into an MMO?
Oh please please please don't ruin Farscape with a badly done MMO. I don't think there's any danger of this, I hasten to point out. The old IPs currently being mined for online games – like DUNE and Lord of the Rings and Star Wars – are far more popular, far more lucrative, and far […]
The Stream Team: Going on a post-holiday Heist 'shopping' spree in Path of Exile
Not only does Massively OP's MJ dislike shopping, but it can sometimes feel like highway robbery thanks to exorbitant pricing. So, what better way to spend Cyber Monday than by spending it "shopping" in Path of Exile's Heist with some five-finger discounts? That she can afford! Join us live at 8:00 p.m. for this post-holiday […]
Craftopia's latest update introduces new weapons and skills, crafting automation, and a washing machine
Yes, a washing machine is now in Craftopia. We're sure you've all been eager to hear that. This new item allows players to wash enchantments off of items to allow them to be stacked, and its addition is just one part of the crafting sandbox's latest update. Of particular note is the addition of a […]
Frozen Flame adjusts some in-game locations, strengthens the Curse, and adds a vendor stall
The multiplayer survival RPG Frozen Flame, which readers will recall was crowdfunded earlier this summer and entered closed beta in September, has once again updated with a few changes of note. The Dragon Cemetery and the Quarry have both gotten some visual upgrades, with continued work on the Titan Heights area also coming down the […]
PSA: Remnant From the Ashes releases its complete edition with both DLCs packed in
If you were curious about Remnant: From the Ashes after reading our brief jaunt through the game in Choose My Adventure (and were able to see through your white-hot indignant rage at the use of "MMO" in that article's title), then now seems about as good a time as any to hop in as the […]
Soul's Remnant is a 2-D platforming MMORPG 'passion project' that has entered a limited-time open alpha
For those who are fans of more colorful and visually flat (as in two-dimensional) MMORPGs, then you might be interested in a little something called Soul's Remnant. This charming-looking title is the "passion project" of solo developer Chaomoon, who has been working on the title since April of 2016, with 99% of the dev work […]
Ship of Heroes' latest video talks mission creation and likely 2021 launch
How do they make the sausage when the sausage is an MMORPG? Generally, gamers are quickly made to regret that question, but Heroic Games is giving a peek into the factory anyway with the finale for its Ship of Heroes mission-creation video series. "We previously covered how the mission design is created when the mission's […]
Wolcen team teases first Chronicle, Bloodtrail, with Diablo III-esque seasons
In the months following its release, the developers of Wolcen: Lords of Mayhem pursued an aggressive schedule of fixes and balance changes, an initiative dubbed the "Second Dawn," but since Second Dawn's completion, they've been quiet. That silence has at last been broken by the announcement that the game's first Chronicle, Bloodtrail, is coming Soon™. […]
Mortal Online 2's beta stress test falls short of world record levels but still yields useful results
Just in case you were curious, the beta launch of Mortal Online 2, which sought to break a world record, didn't: Star Vault's CEO Henrik Nyström confirmed in an update post that concurrency numbers only hit about 2,000 players at peak despite over 40K keys being sent out. It's not all sad trombone noises, however. […]
Fallout 76 drops Fractured Steel trailer for already launched Steel Dawn update
Last week, Bethsoft surprise-launched Fallout 76's Steel Dawn update after accidentally dropping it on Xbox. So you can already play it on basically every platform known to man except your phone and the Switch, and you're probably already immersed in the lore. But the rest of the marketing campaign pushes onward as planned, apparently, as […]
WildStar's devs and fans love on the game two years after its demise
This past weekend saw a special and sad date for WildStar fans, as November 28th marked the two-year anniversary of the game's closure. Some of WildStar's former developers and community emerged to hold up a torch of remembrance for the scifi MMORPG, including lead developer Chad Moore and composer Jeff Kurtenacker. In fact, Kurtenacker had […]
Elite: Dangerous' latest game balance update ramps up pay for bounties and solo combat missions
Earlier in the month, Elite: Dangerous announced plans to make a number of balance changes starting with mining. The next step forward in balance is being taken later today, with a focus on bounties and solo combat missions. Specifically, bounties will see payout increases that are four times as much for the highest paying ones […]
Wisdom of Nym: Analyzing the last pre-patch Final Fantasy XIV producer's letter
Well, it looks like we've got no actual new information on the next expansion. I'm not sure how to feel about that. I mean, sure, I didn't really expect to hear about it when this live letter had other things on its mind, but at the same time it felt plausible. Are we really going […]
SWTOR and Star Wars Galaxies players memorialize the life of Darth Vader actor David Prowse
The Star Wars universe has lost another of its icons: David Prowse, the British actor who filled the very large shoes (though not the voice) of Darth Vader in the original film trilogy. He was 85. The news brought forth players in multiple Star Wars MMOs to pay tribute to the actor. On SWG Legends, […]
First impressions of World of Warcraft: Shadowlands, part two: Endgame experience
Once you get to max level in World of Warcraft, the game changes. This should not be a surprise, as it has been the case in every prior expansion and it's kind of a given that it's the case for this one as well. And that is still kind of a messy way to structure […]
Lands of Kehliel is a competition-focused PvP open world MMORPG headed to Kickstarter soon
PvP sandbox games can be pretty competitive by their very nature, but what if competing against others was the ultimate point of your MMORPG play time? That's what the upcoming Lands of Kheliel by Hitwave Studios is looking to create: "the first MMORPG that focuses in on competition and personal skill." Players start off in […]
Destiny 2 narrative designer confirms a gay relationship between two of the game's NPCs
For players of Destiny 2 that have been paying attention to a number of narrative clues, this information is likely nothing more than a confirmation, but for everyone else, it was indeed made plain by narrative designer Robert Brookes that Saint-14 and Osiris are gay and "always have been." The revelation was part of an […]
World of Warcraft offers up free character transfers in order to alleviate burgeoning populations
Unless you're hiding somewhere in a satellite far removed from the majority of the MMORPG world, you probably know that there are a lot of people playing World of Warcraft: Shadowlands. So many people, in fact, that the devs are offering up some free character transfers in order to address what is being called an […]
Star Citizen debuts new $600 gunship at this year's Intergalactic Aerospace Expo
Just in case you weren't aware, this past Saturday, November 28th, was RSI day at Star Citizen's Intergalactic Aerospace Expo, the in-game event that also doubles as a free fly demo and potential ship sales booster. And it certainly appears that ship sales have indeed been boosted by the debut of the RSI Perseus, a […]
The Daily Grind: Do you actually like noob zones in MMORPGs?
I think there's a widespread grumpiness for MMORPG tutorials. Either they're so pointless and easy that you're bored, or they deluge you with too much information that you won't actually need for many more levels and will surely have forgotten by then. Or worse, they don't tell you the things you really do need to […]
MMO Week in Review: Into the Shadowlands
So if you were all but holding your breath to see whether Blizzard was going to pull off World of Warcraft: Shadowlands, you can exhale now: It's live, it wasn't a huge trainwreck, and so far even the skeptics are pleased with how it plays. Read on to catch up with the very best of […]
Starbase showcases development updates and impressive player creations
This week in Starbase has been yet another busy one in terms of progress, as the latest forum post points to a variety of updates being worked on including the return of class nine and ten asteroids, continued work on factory systems like 3D printers, further work on easy building mode, improvements to ore distribution, […]
The MOP Up: Shadow Arena pings instead of pongs
Pearl Abyss' Shadow Arena got a lot more friendly this past month thanks to an improved ping system and the addition of login rewards. "The ping system has been updated for Trio mode, allowing the maximum distance that players can use pings to be greatly increased," the studio said in a press release. "Even players […]
Iron Harvest 1920 adds new game mode, plans story DLC for December
Multiplayer RTS Iron Harvest 1920's latest patch has added a new competitive mode, Drop Zone, which can be played in all PvP modes as well as skirmish versus AI. In Drop Zone, players compete to claim air drops that appear at random points on the map, earning points for each drop they claim. It's a […]
Jukebox Heroes: The best of Ashen Empires' soundtrack
Originally inspired by the Ultima series, Dransik came out in the early 2000s as an isometric MMO that rode the rails of indie gaming as hard as it could. Gradually, the title rebranded itself as Ashen Empires but still remained a pretty hardcore and old school title that relished its niche status. Ashen Empires doesn't […]
Old-school hardcore MMORPG Reign of Darkness issues $100K Kickstarter, free demo
Remember Reign of Darkness? We covered its early access arrival back in 2019; it's a medieval grimdark MMORPG being developed by one person that styles itself as a game that "hearkens back to when players had to play a game to figure things out with a short learning curve," where players engage in old-school tab-target […]
One Shots: The life of fish people
Indentured servitude is something that Final Fantasy XIV likes to introduce to its players, such as poor Scott, who discovered that he's in for a two-month stint of doing fetch quests for fish people. Oh my cod, he's gonna flounder. Just looking at this picture raises so many questions that I hope the game can […]
The Daily Grind: What's the best method for delivering MMO quests?
I have long held that among the many (many) things World of Warcraft codified in the big book of MMORPG "rules" is the quest system, which certainly seemed like a step up at the time, given how messy MMO questing was back in the early days of MMOs. The question marks, the pop-up quest text, […]
Make My MMO: Star Citizen offers a free-fly while Elite Dangerous is just free
It's been a weird couple of weeks for MMO crowdfunding: Book of Travels teased a big update coming next week, Valiance Online and Titan Reach resurfaced, Star Citizen expanded its developer base and relished in its free-fly event, Zenith delayed its alpha, and Elite Dangerous is free on the EGS. Finally, Pantheon shared the sad news that […]
Elite Dangerous hosts an AMA about Odyssey, player numbers, and future adjustment plans
In an effort to open lines of direct communication, the devs of Elite: Dangerous had an AMA on the game's forums recently, covering practically the entire spectrum of player matters, from the upcoming Odyssey expansion to mechanic changes and nearly everything in between. Here are a few of the highlights: Ship interiors for Odyssey, as stated […]
Destiny 2 further delays Trials of Osiris as invisibility exploit runs rampant
One of Destiny 2's most popular event modes has been conspicuously absent ever since the online shooter released its Beyond Light expansion earlier this month. Players had hoped that the weekend Trials of Osiris would return soon — and Bungie had promised to bring them back for Thanksgiving weekend — but plans change and the […]
The Stream Team: Escaping the Dual Universe tutorial trap
It's been some time since Massively OP's MJ tried (and failed) to stake her claim in Dual Universe — she couldn't even escape the tutorial world! Now, she's added new RAM to her computer help things run smoother and she's looking forward to finally checking out her friends' bases. Tune in live at 2:00 p.m. […]
Global Chat: Shadowlands impressions from the community
With one of this year's biggest releases out this week, we've taken to the mean streets of Blogtown to see what MMO gamers are saying about World of Warcraft: Shadowlands. What's the word out there? Read on to find out! Kamalia thought that the first day seemed rather quiet: "The Maw is, of course, unsettling […]
Hearthstone's community is in open revolt over the new reward system
It's been an ugly month in Hearthstone's neck of the woods — and it's only getting worse. Community outcry over what it's seeing as stingy and greedy business tactics with the game's revised reward structure and new its Tavern Pass system are sparking riots and protests pretty much anywhere that Hearthstone and its studio rears […]
WRUP: Reasons you should not punch a goat edition
Goats are our friends. Goats provide milk which may be turned into soft and delicious cheeses. It's really more unusual to think of reasons why you would want to punch a goat, as the goat has almost certainly done nothing to harm you. Goats have long memories and the allegiance of Bin-Y'thak, the Crow of […]
The Daily Grind: Is RuneScape part of your MMO gaming history?
Several times on the podcast we've marveled at how there is this bizarre disconnect between the apparent huge popularity of RuneScape and how little engagement it seems to drive. In trying to understand this phenomenon, we've mused about how many younger gamers may have cut their teeth on this game back when it was a […]
The Stream Team: Completing Warframe's The Glassmaker
Last time, Massively OP's MJ investigated the first three crime scenes that Glassmaker left behind in Warframe. Tonight, her goal is to finish the final episodes and solve the mystery. Tune in live at 8:00 p.m. for the conclusion of The Glassmaker series. What: Warframe Who: MJ Guthrie When: 8:00 p.m. EDT on Friday, November 27th, 2020 […]
